Tenebris Sectorem
by TrebleNine
Summary: My life didn't end on the 21st of December. It began. Inexplicably finding myself in the Mass Effect universe, things start to go wrong from the first step. I'm not with Shepard. Can't even find any recognisable faces. I'm just another insignificant human in the galaxy... So that begs the question, why the hell is the Shadow Broker after me?
1. Prologue

**A/N: This is my first time even attempting a Self-Insert, and I have no idea how it's even going to turn out. But hopefully it'll be good enough to capture your interests.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Mass Effect series, if I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction about it...**

**A/N*: I've re-written the first two chapters since I think they're nowhere near up to standards. If you've already read them, read them again. I assure you it's much better :P **

**I'll re-write the third soon. **

* * *

**PROLOGUE**

_**21**__**st**__** December 2012**_

_**England**_

_**21:00 GMT**_

The world was supposed to end today.

It'd been tense. The whole situation had me on edge. I'd gotten startled at tremors caused by everyday things like the garbage truck or the washing machine. Deep inside I knew it was all bullshit, but there's always this part of you that remains apprehensive of the 'what ifs' in life, you know?

So when everyone else I knew were out partying their supposedly last day away, I was sitting in front of two TVs. I'd hefted the one from my room downstairs, and tuned into the local news channel, in case of any earth-shattering disasters and the like. The other was showing the pause screen of Mass Effect 3, since the batteries in my Xbox controller had just run out of juice. I sighed and began a fruitless search for them around the room. I swear those things just lay around everywhere when you don't need them, but when you do, they disappear.

I'd just been playing a bit of multi-player, hoarding the credits in an attempt to save up for the DLCs that had just been leaked. An even more powerful Krogan with a hammer? A Geth Prime with sync kills? Oh yes, this DLC had prolonged the game's life just a bit longer. But considering this was the final addition to trilogy, I was a bit sad. I loved the franchise and to see its story finally come to an end was creating some weird emotions. I didn't like endings.

I shook my head at the fact I was more concerned over a fictional universe rather than my own, and decided to take desperate measures on my battery situation. It was whilst stealing some from the TV remote that I happened to glance outside. Now you see, in Britain, we usually have grey skies. Occasionally blue.

Today, the sky was fucking red.

A startling mixture of dark burgundy and swirling persimmons. The sun shone low, a blinding light on the horizon. There were auroras in the sky too, tinted light pink. Hard to see against the red sky, but they were there. The moon seemed bigger, despite the fact it was midday. Oh, and some huge black thing too. It was vaguely hexagonal, with eight spikes protruding out of the middle. Looked like some sort of beetle. It was coming down fast.

So that's how it was going to be, an alien invasion. Maybe the Mayans were right after all.

I grabbed my coat and the keys to my dad's Audi off the wall, and opened the front door. He was in work. I'm sure he wouldn't mind me using his car to save my life. But when I step outside, clad in three layers of clothing like a sensible British person, a wave of blistering heat hits me. It was as if I'd been teleported to the middle of the African savannah. The air was incredibly dry too, and full of static electricity. My hair and the fur on the coat went wild.

Red lightning began cascading over the black object in the sky. As the thing hit the ground, the lighting surrounding it dissipated and began to sweep towards me like the shock-wave of a nuclear bomb.

I wasn't going to survive a lighting storm in a car. I took my coat off as I turn around to head back inside. Fiddling with the keys, I see out of the corner of my eye that there was a purple haze surrounding me. A light, wispy fog of violet gas. It suddenly flashed.

~/~

* * *

~/~

I woke up groggily. Never have I experienced such a bad headache in my life. I squeezed the sides of my head in an attempt to make the pain stop, and it happened to numb the pain slightly. Opening my eyes is agonizing however, and the brightness hurts.

The only thing I notice is how white the ceiling is and how clean the floor is. This isn't my room.

Then slowly, as if a computer is rebooting itself part by part, I regain my bodily functions. The smell of a hospital assaults my nose. It's as if every medical building in the world uses the same disinfectant. Some stupid part of me wants to have a share in whatever brand of disinfectant the government has ordered for use. I can hear the whirring of equipment, but nothing else. My arms and legs feel fine. I can breathe perfectly. Why am I in a hospital?

_And is the alien invasion over?_

The world didn't end then. Such an anti-climax. But what the hell happened? I remember walking outside, and then a…flash of purple? Did I get knocked out by a flash-bang grenade or something? What? It had to be. It didn't make any sense. Maybe it was the red lightning.

So you'd understand perfectly, that I passed out again when a fucking Salarian in a lab-coat entered the room.


	2. Patient

**A/N: The most edited chapter. Give it another read if you've read the old one. It's changed _a lot._ I promise you.**

* * *

**PATIENT**

_**?**_

_**?**_

_**?**_

"You're awake. Open your eyes human."

The voice was hard to describe, but it was instantly recognisable. Sort of grainy, spoken quickly and towards the higher end of the frequency. It was definitely the Salarian doctor. But I was in too much shock to even move a muscle.

"Come on, come on, I have lots to do. Open your eyes. I know you're awake. The machines say you've exited a shock-induced vasovagal syncope state and are responding to outside stim…"

I opened my eyes with a sigh, at least to stop him talking.

"See? That wasn't so hard."

He scanned my entire head with an orange light and took some readings from some wire that was stuck onto my forearm with adhesive. It didn't penetrate skin, yet I pulled it out immediately.

"What are you doing? Never mind. Only small blisters left of original attack. No long-term brain damage. You're fine. Sign here and you can leave."

_Original attack?_ _Brain damage?_

Now that he mentioned it, my hands and face did feel a bit… raw.

I stared at him. I could see the similarity to a toad. Or the clichéd alien stereotype used in older films of the day. You know the ones. Skinny as hell, big heads with equally disproportionate eyes. And here was one talking to me in perfect English. It was just surreal.

The whole damn situation was surreal.

He took a data pad out of a pocket and handed it to me. Imagine an iPad, but with only half of it actually solid. The top half was holographic orange. The bottom half was a touch-screen keyboard. I simply typed my name in, and gave it back to him.

"So, Dah-ren Hoh-pees, you can get up now. Humans have such funny names." He muttered to no-one in particular.

"It's pronounced Darren Hopes. And to be frank, I'd probably find your name funny." I replied. I likely just offended him, but he seemed like an asshole. None of the compassion that I usually found in a physician. But then again, he wasn't my usual physician,

He looked at me quizzically. He had no eyebrows, I don't think most aliens in Mass Effect do, but one eye-ridge arched higher than the other.

"My name is Dr Chad Ordon. You find that amusing?"

It wasn't such a funny name actually. I swung my legs around and stood up. I swayed on my feet as the blood rushed from my head; threatening to pass out a third time in what was to me, very quick succession. The Salarian mustn't have noticed, since he just turns around and walks away. The door is automatic, and made of glass or something else transparent. It slides open as he walks through. I follow him, unsure of what else to do.

Outside, the corridor followed pretty much the same design pattern as the room. Bland. There were a few pictures dotted around though, beautiful landscapes with motivational quotes written on them, but I didn't recognise any of the famous people saying them. Out of the windows, I saw that the sky was still red. So at least I was on the same planet. Maybe this Salarian was just one of my friends in a costume, trying to take advantage of my unconsciousness. Was this all some stupid prank? The bastards had sick humour like that.

But that possibility becomes less likely as the corridor converged with two more to form a larger, single one. There's much more activity here. Medical staff were running around all over the place, carrying equipment, data pads, and some even had patients on stretchers. What catches my attention is the sight of a man with a charred right leg, whimpering as he was taken into a room on the far side of where I was standing. I tried not to concentrate on other people with similar horrific injuries, and just followed the doctor out.

As we reach the reception, I realise something.

I'm still in the clothes I was wearing on the day the world was supposed to end. Great.

Some people stare at me as they walk past. Imagine how you'd view someone who was walking around your streets in medieval attire, especially at times of national distress like this. I couldn't tell if they were looks of contempt or confusion, but both were perfectly understandable.

I chastised myself for being more worried about the way I looked, instead of the fact I was in a different universe! My family, my friends, and everyone on Earth at that time… gone. Or are they all still there, and I'm the one who's disappeared? I didn't know where I was or what time it was. I needed to get myself oriented.

"So, uh, Dr Ordon…"

"Yes?"

"Where are the other survivors? Is it safe out there?"

"Outside? The main public walkways are safe, yes. I hear rumours of Geth resistance elsewhere. A liaison from your Alliance Civilian Committee is in the conference room however. He's requested all able bodied men and women to see him. I suggest attending the meeting."

_Geth? What?_

"How many victims exactly?"

"Here? Only around 400. But reports are coming in that around a third of the entire population has been affected."

"A third of Earth is gone?!"

He stopped and turned to face me, putting his quizzical face on again.

"Earth? Don't be silly. You're on Eden Prime." With that, he walked off again.

_Eden Prime? The fuck?_

Then it all clicked. The red sky. Sovereign. The Geth.

But how the hell had I got here?

I jogged to catch up with the doctor, who had led me to the foyer. He handed the data pad over to a human receptionist, gestured me towards an adjacent hallway, and walked back the way we came.

I walked down towards where he had pointed, and found the conference room. A sign told me I was heading towards a 'staff only' zone.

The door opened when I walked up to it, so I ignored the warnings and stepped through. Inside was a pretty large hall, with chairs laid out in rows. A couple of people in blue uniform stood on a small raised dais at the front. Half of the chairs were still vacant. I sat near the back, not wanting to draw attention.

When the hall was about three-quarters full, a tall man stood up and began talking. He wore Alliance uniform. Similar to what Admiral Hackett was wearing in Mass Effect 3, but dark blue with silver highlights. Perhaps that signified rank? I couldn't make out how many bars he had on his shoulders. However, this man had no ribbons emblazoned upon his chest unlike the illustrious Admiral.

I didn't pay close enough attention, but he said something about the Alliance trying all they could to save the colony, but the presence of Geth had apparently surprised them. Apparently the major cities were left alone, but most of this continent was devastated.

Eden Prime was an agricultural colony that happened to have many Prothean sites of historical importance, as far as I remember. But I don't recall seeing any cities or similar infrastructure. Apart from the tram thing in the first game, and the temporary prefab constructions in the third, I thought all of the other large buildings were Prothean ruins. Apparently it was human architecture. All those skyscrapers were built by us.

The rate of human expansion just bewilders me for a minute. Think about it, even the largest cities on Earth took hundreds of years to build, yet here I was not even two centuries in the future and we've colonized entire _planets_. I can see why the other races are frightened of us. We're not the strongest, brightest or longest living species as a whole, but our sheer adaptability and ability to survive is probably only surpassed by bacteria. Alright, it doesn't sound that amazing when you put it that way, but suddenly, I'm damned proud to be human.

The Alliance Officer then began explaining that the main reason the colony failed to repel the attack effectively was due to the lack of military presence in the area. There was to be a final clean-up effort later this afternoon, which would eliminate all the remaining Geth and make it safe to go back to the rural areas. I lost track of what he said afterwards, but it all kept coming down to the single fact that we had too few Alliance soldiers to deal with the threat. To prevent this from occurring again he wanted everyone in the room to volunteer for this duty. The Alliance needed more people to 'stand up in the face of the enemy, to protect their homes' as he so eloquently put it.

Bullshit.

The guy was a military recruiter. I didn't blame him for trying the hospital, considering the circumstances, but I knew what was going on here. These people wouldn't be stationed here on Eden Prime. A local militia would've been trained here, on the planet, but these volunteers were being taken to Arcturus Station, the capital of the Alliance.

That meant these men and women would be seeing action all over the galaxy. Yet they were being led to believe they'd be protecting their own homes, probably thinking they'd just be standing in fields around Eden Prime, providing security detail for archaeologists. It was obvious the Alliance were expecting future attacks and attempting to bolster their overall military strength.

_Good. But not like this. _

If other people had similar realisations, they didn't show it. Then again, if they didn't want to fight, they wouldn't be here. If they actually had family, they'd be with them right now.

At the end, the people were free to leave. Whoever wanted to sign up for the Alliance, were to stay behind for further information. I knew the full risks, but it still wasn't a hard decision for me to be perfectly honest. Where was I to go if I leave now? Who do I turn to? I had no one here.

Shepard was probably a Spectre by now, chasing leads light years away. I had no way to even know what gender the Commander was! I've read a couple of stories about trans-dimensional travel in my time, and this is_ not_ how they go.

So without even questioning my sanity, at the ripe old age of 20, I'd signed up for the Alliance Navy. The officers would escort us recruits to the local spaceport, and then to Arcturus Station. We were to collect our personal belongings, say goodbye to loved ones and meet up here again in 24 hours.

_So, guess I'm staying the night at the hospital then…_

_~/~_

* * *

~/~

The next morning, I found myself being shaken awake by some strange man. He was in that white and red leather suit thing that the medical personnel of this galaxy seemed to prefer.

"What injuries do you have?"

I'd managed to find a spot back out in the reception away from all the noise last night. Casualties had still continued to come in, but had slowed down to a trickle rather than the onslaught of the morning. But now the hospital was apparently full enough to make the ones without life threatening injuries wait in the... well, waiting area. I was on one of these chairs, so to any passer-by I was simply a man who had fallen asleep whilst waiting for a doctor.

"Oh no, I'm fine, I'm waiting for someone."

"If you're waiting for injured family or friends, can I ask you to please wait outside the hospital and give up your seat to someone who needs medical attention." He sighed and walked off to another person.

I stood up and stretched, moving away from the seating area. I began feeling incredibly hungry. All I had was a bottle of water and one of the ration bars that they were giving out last night. The ration bar was packed full of energy. I don't know how they managed to squeeze two thousand calories into a fist sized bar, but they did. Or so the packaging claimed. As you would've guessed, it tasted like utter shit. I wouldn't have minded the sickly sweet flavour, but it left a stale aftertaste. And the texture, urgh, it just felt like you were chewing through pure whale blubber. I couldn't manage more than a bite.

On a good note, I'd found my watch and keys in my pocket, and a few hundred pounds in cash. Maybe I could actually get a decent amount of credits for that. I knew that old money was usually worth a hell of a lot more than their modern equivalent due to inflation. My credit card and driver's license would be useless though.

I found the conference room again, and saw that it now had a few desks set up. The Alliance official from yesterday wasn't here. Instead, there were two armoured soldiers handling processing.

I joined a small queue, behind two men who seemed to know each other. They both appeared Hispanic. They also had facial features similar enough to be brothers. The tougher looking guy out of the two had a blonde buzz-cut to compliment his Mediterranean colouring, which was strange considering the contrast.

And although they weren't talking English, I could tell they were obviously arguing. Aggression held a universally recognised vibe. After their conversation had ended quite heatedly, the other man just shoved his way back out. I began reading a leaflet for some charity out of boredom, when the blonde one turned to face me.

"Brings you to join the Alliance?" He had a deep voice, was built heavier than me, but was shorter by a couple of inches. He seemed to be calm despite what had just happened. I estimated his age to be around the same as mine.

"The pay." I joked.

He laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, I don't really have anything else to do with my life. And after this attack… nowhere to go." I answered honestly. He became serious at this remark.

"Sorry to hear that, but know what you mean. Similar problem myself, I've no proper qualifications. Should've listened to the teachers in school, eh?"

Alright, he'd got the wrong end of what I'd said. I'd had enough qualifications to be studying quantum mechanics in one of the top universities of England. Pretty sure they held as much power as my license right now, though, even if I could provide evidence of them.

Anyway, the guy talked bizarrely, leaving chunks of his sentences out. If you wrote down his direct speech, a word processing application would have a heart attack with the grammatical errors.

There was a sudden commotion so I looked over towards the front. The soldiers had begun processing everyone. They were handing out small black duffel bags.

"The standard issue uniform and omni-tool. We have to be in uniform before stepping foot on Arcturus. Didn't you read your leaflet?"

My face must have conveyed the curiosity. I'd be a shit spy.

"What leaflet?" I replied. Didn't even know there was one. "Well, where're my manners? I'm Darren. And no, schooling wasn't my issue. Family problems explain it better." I introduced myself.

"Ramiro Rodriguez." He held his hand out to shake. I shook it firmly a few times. "Family problems I also understand. Not everyone is supportive of joining the military, as you just saw."

I nodded with a grim smile. Guess I was right about them being brothers.

"Anyway I'd give you my leaflet, but must have dropped it somewhere. What'd you have in your hand earlier?"

"Oh that? That was some charity thing for Binary Helix."

We carried on small talking our way to the front of the queue.

The Alliance recruiter from yesterday wasn't here. I suspect he had other places to be. We had his underlings. A guy with a data pad sat at the desk in a chair. A woman was taking belongings away and handing out black duffel bags at the next desk.

"I'm Lieutenant Casper. Just fill in your name, current address, and account number." The man ordered.

Ramiro typed it all in, gave a couple of things for them to look after, and then took the bag. He stood to the side, presumably waiting for me.

I didn't have a current address or a bank account. I did have a name though. One out of three wasn't so bad. The Alliance officer didn't think so.

"Just type in where you live. We'll sort out the bank account later." I just typed in my address where I lived back on Earth. No idea what else to do.

Casper looked up from his data pad, "Earth, eh?"

"Yes, sir"

"And no bank account? That's strange. Take your standard kit and move aside please."

The female officer looked expectantly at me. I love it when women look at me expectantly, heh. No idea why she was though.

Oh right, storage.

"No belongings, ma'am."

Her eyes narrowed slightly, as she too, deemed me strange. She handed over the duffel bag anyway, and I strapped it over my shoulder.

It seemed too easy. But perhaps the Alliance had more security at Arcturus. So far my plan was to continue on this path until I find someone I recognised from the games. I didn't know what I'd do after that. Suppose I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

Ramiro and I followed the procession of recruits outside, where there was a huge shuttle waiting with its doors open. Imagine the Kodiak from the game, but able to fit about fifty people. It was more streamlined, and didn't have the frontal guns. It was a still a military variant though, as shown by the colours and multiple logos of the Alliance.

I took a seat next to a pretty redhead, with Ramiro sat on my other side.

He secured his bag under his seat, then turned and looked past me.

"Damn amigo, you've got good taste." The girl smiled, but I shot him a quick look that hopefully conveyed the words _fuck off_. He merely chuckled before leaning back into his seat and gesturing outside. "See that spire? That was my hotel."

It was a burning wreck. Fire spilled out of multiple windows, consuming everything in its path. The silver walls had become charred. Thick, black smoke was still billowing into the atmosphere.

"The initial Geth attack didn't kill everyone there, so they decided to just bomb the place. Hoping for collateral damage probably. I heard the entire attack in the town was just for a distraction. I managed to get outside when their attack stopped for a bit. Those little damn drones Darren?"

I nodded. Haven't come across them personally, but I knew about Jenkins…

"Chased me through the streets for about fifteen minutes. I was rescued by some marines, but not before one of the fuckers puts a round through my foot."

He shook his head at his own recollections, and moved his injured leg stiffly. Now that I look down for the first time, his entire right foot is bandaged. There's no cast so there mustn't have been any damage to bone, but there's enough medical gauze on there to prevent him from wearing his right shoe. How did I not notice this?

"What about you?"

_Shit._

"Me? Well, basically…"

What the hell do I say? I'm probably going to stay with this guy for a long time. I'm not good at approaching people and telling the truth. So whatever I make up now has got to stay, for a while at least. Even the girl is interested.

_What'd be logical? Think Darren._

"I'm an archaeologist."

Fuck me. I despise history. Why did I just say that? I get a sudden idea.

"I was with the team down by the tram station. When reports of the Geth attack came I hid in a room with two other people. We got busted out and… everyone was dead… the Prothean beacon we found was destroyed too."

I attempted to look depressed, as if all my friends had just been murdered and that my life's work had been ruined in the attack. It must have worked. Ramiro apologized for my loss before settling down and going into a thoughtful mood. The pretty girl just bows her head slightly in my direction and settles back too.

I also feel sort of drained as the realization hits me. I actually _have_ lost all my friends. I'll never see them again. I wonder how they got on. Did Ben finally pass his driving test? Was Adam's wife going to have a baby girl or would it be a boy? I tense my jaws as tears begin to form. I was supposed to be the godfather for that child.

_Man up Darren._

The whole novelty of being in a game universe is gone. I'm just left with dread and weariness.

I'm from England. I've never fired a gun in my life. Just what the _fuck_ am I doing on a navy shuttle? But it's too late to change my mind. The doors close with a barely audible hiss, and the pilot tells us to prepare for take-off. In this era of inertial dampers and mass effect fields, a basic seat-belt is all that's required.

Two minutes later, I'm pushed back into the seat as we accelerate to top speed in a ridiculously short amount of time. A look out of the window ports reveal that we're already exiting the atmosphere, and heading towards a cruiser. A cruiser from Mass Effect. A space-ship. I'm in space.

_Holy shit._


	3. Recruit

**A/N: **This story has actually smashed previous review and fave counts for me. And with only two chapters!

So, to please you all, here's a third... :D

* * *

**RECRUIT**

_**xxx**_

_**SSV Cairo**_

_**xxx**_

We disembarked from the shuttle and stepped into the threshold of the cruiser. I didn't expect it to be so crowded for something this size. The hangar bay was immense. I don't want to use a generic comparison, but it was about the size of two football pitches...maybe three.

There were walkways around the perimeter of the entire hangar, three stories high, which was still only half way up to the ceiling. Techs were busy on various consoles dotted around on these walkways. Two women in orange coveralls ran through our fifty-strong group as if we weren't there. They carried toolboxes and headed towards the back of the hangar, where a couple of fighters were coming into land. One of them was actually on fire. Automated systems kicked in and foam was sprayed onto the fighter from arm-like machines, dousing the flames. More automated arms latched onto the fighters from below, and pulled them away from the main entrance. Smaller shuttles, like the familiar Kodiak, came in after the fighters and deposited their load of marines into the hangar.

It was organised chaos.

Another man in Alliance uniform came over, and stood at attention near a podium for no apparent reason. He stood like that for around fifteen minutes, until everyone had unconsciously formed three columns and lined up. I had a feeling I was going to be seeing this man a lot.

Once our shuttle had been moved into its designated area, the pilot exited with Lieutenant Casper and the female officer from the hospital. The Lieutenant came over to the podium, and introduced the man to us. He was clearly much older than Casper. He had a salt and pepper buzz-cut. No facial hair. His grey eyes were steely, and were proof of a man who'd been through hell and back. His pasty white face was dotted with a multitude of faint scars that would never heal completely, but none large enough to be telling his grandchildren about.

"Recruits. Listen up. This here is Staff Sergeant Brooks." An almost imperceptible nod passed between the two men. "He will be your teacher, your mentor and your only hope of even making it through this course." Casper began pacing back and forth as Brooks finally relaxed his stance and stepped forward.

"I am Staff Sergeant Brooks, your Senior Drill Instructor. From now on, you will speak only when spoken to, and the first and last words out of your filthy mouths will be _'Sir'. _Do you understand?"

In unison, we all shouted "Sir!"

_This guy… _

"If you survive basic training, you will be a weapon, to be used by in any way the Alliance sees fit. But until that day, you are nothing!_"_

_I did not like this guy…_

The hangar bay doors began to close. I think the cruiser was leaving.

"Follow me to your barracks. You will be given 30 minutes to get accustomed to your barracks and then you are to be ready for a fitness test." Brooks eyed a particularly chubby man at the front, and grinned. "I assume this will be enlightening."

The Alliance woman, whose name I still didn't know, called the female recruits over. She then led them out of the hangar bay.

I stood behind Ramiro and the other men, finding myself last in line. We followed the Sergeant down various corridors, and climbed about three flights of stairs before we got to some sort of atrium. It was around now I felt a shudder run through the ship's floor. It was accompanied by a high-pitched whine in the far background of my senses. I _know_ the ship was accelerating, but I didn't feel even the slightest of forces act upon me. The experience went against all I was taught about the laws of physics. It was disconcerting to say the least.

For a place meant for recreational activities, the Cairo's atrium looked very austere. It was around half the size of the hangar, and had artificial grass in flat plains to both sides of the wide path dividing it. Trees grew in large white pots, all placed in a concentric pattern expanding outwards from a point in the centre. The trees themselves were very plain looking, young oaks of some sort. Again, very… Spartan. But I guess that's what you have to expect on a military vehicle. The lights were dimmed to half strength, probably signifying that it was evening on whatever clock this ship ran on.

We were led through more corridors before we actually got to the barracks. A sign told us there were' Alpha', 'Beta' and 'Gamma' sections of the barracks. We were left in the Gamma section and simply told to organise ourselves. With that, Sergeant Brooks left.

It was just a rectangular room lined with bunks on one side, and tables and chairs on the other. Between the bunks were small lockers. People immediately began claiming top bunks for themselves, throwing their bags over and even jumping atop the beds. I decided to be sensible for once, and just sat down on the nearest bed. I never did like sleeping on top bunks anyway. I knew from past experience that I was _not _a still sleeper.

Ramiro ended up on a top bunk to the left of me somewhere. A guy with a jet-black ponytail climbed the short ladder and got on the top bunk of my bed. He was a big man, the ladder creaking under his weight.

_Hah. He's gonna miss that haircut._

He looked like John Travolta, but with a smaller face. He didn't seem to be awfully cheerful either, so I held off on introductions for now.

I zipped open the black duffel bag I'd been given back down on Eden Prime. I emptied the contents onto the bed. There were two plain grey t-shirts, a pair of dark blue combats, three dark blue boxer shorts, three pairs of black socks and an assortment of unmarked toiletries. A small black chip fell out too. It looked like a memory card.

The other guy came back down and began to change. Now that I look around me, most of the recruits are doing just the same.

I change into the grey shirt and combats too. The grey shirt is probably a medium, but made of stretchy cotton-type material. I've always been sporty, and kept fit by hitting the gym as much as possible. I have an averagely toned build - and I'm not complaining - but I always thought tighter shirts made me look as if I was showing off or something. Now that I'm in the military, I think it's a good idea it's a tight fit.

_John Travolta's biceps here look positively fit to burst._

The combat pants on the other hand… barely reached the tops of my ankles. I'm six foot two, and these were definitely not long enough. If I wore those black socks, and pulled the pants down a bit, I could probably make it work. But it wouldn't last through whatever fitness test Brooks was about to throw us into.

Some guys began fussing about wanting military grade hacking tools, and other guys were now opening the lockers with a swipe of orange light. I learnt that the black chips were actually some sort of keys. We were supposed to use an omni-tool to set a code onto them….

_Right._

Obviously, I had no omni-tool. It was made worse by the fact that our combat boots were inside the lockers. So I went to find Ramiro. He was tying his shoelaces when I found him, three beds away.

"Hey, mate, can I borrow your omni-tool?"

He looked up at me slowly, confusion contorting his face.

"Say again? You wanted to _borrow _my omni-tool?"

"Well, yeah. I haven't got one."

"You're from Britain, Earth. And you end up on Eden Prime with no belongings and no omni-tool? I'm really starting to doubt that amigo..."

It was weird, because I suddenly felt ashamed. You know when you've told a serious lie, and the other person is close to finding out the truth? And you get this feeling of guilt wash over you suddenly? Yeah, that feeling.

"Doubt what?" I asked him. He shook his head before taking a wristband/watch thing off.

"That you're actually from Earth. But here you go."

_So trusting…_

"You sure you don't have to delete some history or anything?" I shouted over my shoulder, as I walked away with his omni-tool.

"Motherfucker!"

"Hah"

I examined the wristband as I put it on. It was simple and seemed to be made of black metal, with two buttons, one slightly larger than the other. I clicked the larger button on it. Orange light burst forth, and encased my entire forearm. It was so awesome! I must have looked slightly crazy though, staring open-mouthed at the omni-tool for about a minute.

I'd always thought it was some sort of technology chipped under your skin, which reacted on impulses from the user. But a wristband? Eh, the simpler, the easier to fix I suppose.

A menu popped up, asking me to sign in as 'R Rodriguez', or as a guest. I chose the guest option. You could use the interface to type directly with your free hand, or use the hand holding the omni-tool to scroll around by wiggling your fingers. Useful maybe, if you were holding a gun.

Another page came up after a short loading screen. All it had was 'Extranet Explorer' and 'My Omni-Tool' options. Surprisingly intuitive.

_And surprisingly familiar…_

I picked up the little chip. I didn't know whether I had to insert it into some port, or…nope, the omni-tool scanned it automatically once within range. I set a code for my locker, and inserted the chip into a slot within the door. I then clicked on a new program that had appeared, called 'Alliance Locker'. The omni-tool emitted a thin beam of light, which I directed over the locker door. There was a slight click, then it unlocked.

Ah, my boots.

I have no idea how, but they've invented one-size-fits-all shoes. There's a squishy material inside that moulds around your feet, before it hardens into a leather-like consistency. No need to break into new shoes anymore, and no more blisters that come with that experience.

Ramiro abruptly stands up when I give his omni-tool back, and as I turn around, Sergeant Brooks is waiting in the middle of the room.

Damn these silent automatic doors!

~/~

* * *

~/~

I was so wrong. The definition of '_fit'_ changes once you're in the military.

Sergeant Brooks made us do a five mile run. Followed by quick drills of crunches, press-ups and pull-ups.

As a warm up!

Then a few women dressed in those medical uniforms come in. I don't know why women in this galaxy decided that tight-fitting leather is a good look for everything. But it's distracting as hell, since it actually makes them good-looking! All wear glossy white leather, and all three look nearly identical. Literally the same height, same colour hair and similar features.

Is the Alliance making clones or something?

Before I can draw attention to myself with whatever looks I must have been giving the doctors, Brooks tells us to 'form up' in front of the treadmills, and so we do.

The doctors attach some equipment to the wall, and set up an indirect way to monitor us. No wires. Since there were only three of them, we had to take it in turns to run. It was a standard 1500m run. The first guys ran for a few minutes at top speed before exhausting themselves, after which we soon learnt it wasn't speed but stamina we were being assessed upon. The record was set by some scrawny man who wouldn't have looked out of place winning a marathon. He did it in 4 minutes and 14 seconds. He seemed very happy for some reason, grinning away like an idiot. I saw that Brooks took notice of this, but said nothing.

Of course, I didn't beat him, but I tried my damned best to. I was pleased with 5 minutes.

After a little speech on how Alliance Marines can run for miles without breaking stride, we entered the resistance training area of the gym. The clones hooked up a machine that looked like a sophisticated bench-press with more monitors. The scrawny guy didn't look so happy now.

This machine didn't have weights. It had 'levels'. I managed to lift up to 'level 8', but other than that I had no idea how I did.

It went on like this, exercise after exercise. Assessment after assessment. The clones took readings of every move we made.

I was exhausted, and more importantly, the hunger had set in. I've been without a proper meal for nearly a whole day now. We were taken to our barracks, told to 'freshen up', and left alone once more by Brooks. The toilets were at the back of the room and, you guessed it, had open bay showers. That wasn't even the embarrassing part.

Oh no.

The embarrassing part was that I didn't know how to turn the fucking showers on!

* * *

**A/N:** It all seems a bit easy for Darren so far, right? Well, next chapter is titled 'Prisoner'... oooh.

Thanks to **JadeDragonMTR** for help with this chapter, and the whole story in general actually!


	4. Prisoner

**PRISONER**

_**XXX**_

_**SSV Cairo**_

_**00:40 GST**_

It was cold and dark. Droplets of rain fell onto me, yet somehow I was still dry. The sky was a deep shade of navy blue and stretched into the horizon unbroken, like a piece of tarp stretched taut. No clouds. No gradients. At the edges, it merged with the ground, which was the exact same colour. The only thing separating sky from land was the thinnest of black lines. But the floor beneath my feet shimmered like water in the sunlight, light refracting wildly and throwing shadows around. In fact, I think I _was_ standing on water. Thick particles of white pollen were falling to the ground softly, and being as paranoid as I am, I began to breathe more carefully and with a hand over my mouth.

_Where the hell am I?_

And as soon as I started to think comprehensible thoughts, a horrible sound appeared. It was like static. Pure white noise. Just quietly at first, in the background. But like a dam bursting, something gave way and the noise struck me. I was brought to my knees as it rumbled through me, every fibre of my being shaken violently. Then, as soon as it had appeared, it vanished. Blood had already begun to fall onto my shirt before I realised my nose was bleeding. A dreadful feeling of déjà vu occurred too. Like… I've been here before…

I could feel one hell of a headache beginning to take form as I stood. When I looked up, a Turian was standing before me.

"Fuck!"

I fell down in shock, and unconsciously backpedalled away, even though he seemed completely oblivious to my presence. He turned to his left, revealing an assortment of laboratory equipment placed around. He reached inside a cupboard.

I stood up into a fighting stance. No alien was going to kidnap and experiment on me!

But instead of pulling out a pair of restraining equipment or whatever, he puts on a pair of goggles and starts to do something science-y. Rock analysis I think. Bits of black stones with light blue veins were being scrutinized under a microscope.

It was about 5 minutes before I mustered enough sense to say something.

"Hey. You."

Admittedly, it wasn't the best thing I could have said, but still, he completely ignores me.

No response.

"Mr Turian!"

This elicited a slight blip of static. Then slowly, the Turian turned around. His jaws moved, but no sound came out. Reminded me of an old Bruce Lee movie.

"**Human."**

I nearly shat my pants right there and then. The voice was _in my head!_ Dark, foreboding, and chorused. Like a thousand entities were speaking simultaneously. And then it clicked.

"**You do not belong."**

I was talking to a Leviathan! Too surprised to say anything, I stood still, staring at the Turian, even as he transformed into a human male. The man walked around the small station, and I felt compelled to follow him. So I did. He stopped before another station, set up similarly. But instead of ignoring me, he turned and looked me in the eye.

"**You are an abnormality. You should not exist here."**

_Huh. Thanks. _

"**You co-exist within parallel, yet misaligned timeframes. This has not been previously observed."**

_The hell is he saying?_

"**Your presence may be of benefit to us."**

"I have a name."

That probably wasn't the wisest thing to say. Everything went black.

"**Irrelevant. We will continue to study."**

A flash of purple.

~/~

* * *

~/~

I awoke to the full force of a hammering headache, driving me to sit bolt upright. I banged my head on the bunk above me, and the combined pain almost made me faint. Sometimes being tall had its drawbacks.

But, shit! Leviathans! In my head! Was it just a dream? It certainly felt real. But before I could do anything else, the lights in the barracks came on.

Reflexively, I closed my eyes, but the bright illumination still pierced through my lids and made everything worse! I fell to the floor clutching my head.

The clack of heavy boots was much louder than the other men waking up groggily. I thanked God as a large shadow fell over me, reducing the pain somewhat.

"Good. Your reaction time is better than these lazy fuckers'. Get up!"

I got up. Just like the voice ordered me to.

"Shit, you must have hit your head or something boy."

I slowly opened my eyes, wishing for everything to just go away, and that I was back in my comfy bed back home. I didn't ask for any of this crap! But instead, Sergeant Brooks stood pointing a finger at my face. He had nicely trimmed nails.

"Wh-what?"

"Your face boy. Looks like someone's stood on it."

I looked down at my blood stained shirt. The nosebleed? So it was real?

"Just a nosebleed sir."

Seeming rather unimpressed at my nonchalance, Brooks told me to get cleaned up and walked off to make sure the others were awake. The buzzing metal rod he carried would help him on that endeavour, I guess. The weapon looked distinctly like the ones Cerberus troops were using in the third game. 'Shock Batons' I think they were called.

I heard two discharges of high voltage, and two equally anguished cries of pain behind me as I stepped into the bathroom.

I washed my face to get rid of the blood. It was relatively fresh and therefore easy to wipe off. The other men came in and prepared to shower at this point, so I decided I may as well too. It gave me an opportunity to try and recall what had happened earlier.

The Leviathans had brought me into this universe? No, they had no clue why I was here. But the transition must have caused enough fallout for them to locate me. I could only hope the rest of the galaxy was not advanced enough to catch the trail. Still, what _could_ have caused this? I'm not particularly religious, yet not completely lacking of faith either. An agnostic, right? So I'm not ruling out anything at this point.

Outside, Sergeant Brooks was still waiting. He took us to the mess hall. It led me to wonder why he didn't have any helpers. Maybe he preferred an autocratic hands-on approach to his training, I don't know. It just seemed like a waste of resources. The man was a Staff Sergeant for God's sake. He should be…out there. Shooting Geth and stuff.

But that's not to say he wasn't brutally effective. My bacon and eggs were on the floor after the session he put us through, and I was feeling really pissed off when a female voice called my name over the gym's comm system.

"_EPR Darren Hopes to Lieutenant Casper's office please. EPR Darren Hopes."_

It was like being in school all over again. I just _knew_ that she had a smile on her face when she said that. Fucking receptionists and their cheesy voices. But wait, what's an 'EPR'? And why was I one?

I didn't even know where the office was anyway! I jumped off the treadmill gladly, though, and just stood there until the stupid woman realised her mistake and instead sent someone to me. I just wasn't expecting the Lieutenant himself to come collect me.

He escorted me to his office, which was conveniently enough, really close to our barracks. It was rather bland, something I've come to expect, but he didn't even have a framed picture or indeed anything sentimental on his desk. A couple of data-pads strewn around showed he actually inhabited the room. Otherwise, it was spotless.

He motioned at a chair and I sat down in it. He walked around to the other side of the desk.

He began by placing both hands on his desk, getting himself into a position to look down at me. Immediately, I knew it wasn't good news.

"Right."

He paused, sighing.

"As you may or may not know, I have a lot of processing to do. There are 49 recruits, and databases need to be scoured for records. We don't just allow anyone onto Arcturus, the headquarters of the Alliance Navy."

I think I knew where he was going with this, but I maintained a blank look.

"I've finished all of the background checks. All of the small details have been fine combed. None of the recruits have a criminal record; in fact, I've found most are exemplary citizens."

I smiled grimly.

"Then why is it, that you don't technically even exist Mr Hopes?"

_Ah shit._ I thought they'd have figured it out sooner.

"I don't know."

Lieutenant Casper sighed again.

"I don't have time for this. Explain yourself. We're less than two hours away from a refuelling at the Citadel. Then it's less than a day to Arcturus. I need this sorted out."

"I obviously exist. I'm right here. Check your databases again. Sir."

I had to try and stall for time. But… he wasn't having none of it.

"Right, you're under arrest until we can bring up some proof of you. Security will take you to the brig. This is the military, you have no rights to remain silent and all that crap."

This was stupid, but it felt like an eventuality. I knew it was going to happen at some stage. I didn't resist when two armed men came and took to down to the holding cells. I didn't resist when they took some readings then left me in a cell. I didn't resist when they shut the door.

It was about half an hour later, and I was feeling peckish, the ship shuddered. Had we docked at the Citadel? It was a depressing thought. I've always wanted to see the majestic space station. It's spinning arms, the bustle of millions of aliens minding their own business, thousands of buildings tall enough to rival even the Burj Khalifa; all set in the midst of the stunning Widow Nebula. I mean, a notable thing even Shepard does at the beginning of the first game is marvel at the sight of the Citadel. But here I was stuck in tiny square room. With no windows.

Another jolt rippled through the floor. This pilot was shit. He couldn't even manage a gentle landing.

But a third shudder and the sudden blare of alarms told me we were definitely not docking anywhere. We were being attacked.

It couldn't be pirates. They would have to be utterly stupid to take on an Alliance Cruiser, or utterly outnumber us. But pirates wouldn't join forces like that. Who else? Batarians were still at war with humans, right? I still remember that asteroid mission with the terrorists _very clearly._ But this close to the Citadel? They don't have the balls.

My next thoughts were troubling. What if it was… Saren? I have no idea how relative time was here compared to the game. Shepard could've been to Ilos and back for all I know. Sovereign could be sitting atop his perch, and this cruiser could just be one of the irrelevant ships floating in the background. Nothing more than debris as far as lore is concerned.

Makes me feel small. Worthless.

Another jarring explosion, but this one sounded really close. No, it wasn't an explosion, more like a metallic crunch. Then there was gunfire outside. They must have begun to board us, and unlucky me, they had to pick the brig first.

Erratic bursts of automatic fire from the far right were undoubtedly the standard Avenger assault rifles, their tell-tale clatter unmistakable. The Alliance needs new weapons, seriously. The racket is joined by alternating cracks of two sniper rifles, from the origin of the crash. What idiots bring sniper rifles to a ship boarding?

5 loud reports later, the hallway falls silent.

Apparently two idiots with pinpoint accuracy.

_Who the hell can it be?_

I settle for the explanation that it's well armed mercenaries who have a thing to settle with the Captain of this ship, because I've got nothing else. Then I hear armoured footsteps closing in, until they stop directly outside my door.

"Breaching!"

_Wait, what?!_

I run to the far side of the cell and squeeze myself in between the bed and the wall. I've never moved so fast in my life.

The charges blow a neat square gap in the doors - not as much shrapnel as I thought there would be - and the attackers walk through. They're both Salarian. They're wearing completely black armour, with a few white insignias and markings. And both hold what appear to be Mantis sniper rifles, also painted black. The one in front takes a data-pad out of an armoured compartment, and seemingly compares the image on it to me.

"Target located."

He then takes a full syringe out as I open my eyes in horror.

_They were after me?!_

With a movement so quick I could hardly register the pain, he jabs the needle into my neck.

"Target subdued."


	5. Hostage

**********A/N:** Exams are just in the way of everything, and so I decided to halt this story so could focus on one thing at a time. I didn't want to just throw out half-assed chapters. Sorry for making you all wait so long, but until the summer, updates will have to be completely at random. Hope you all understand :D

* * *

**HOSTAGE**

_**xxx**_

_**SSV Cairo**_

_**07:57 GST**_

I completely expected to black out. I've lost count of how many times that's happened since I came here.

But no.

Instead, the lines of the universe melted. Yup. Doors became portals into extra dimensions. My Salarian captors became undulating silhouettes of pure darkness. The walls, well, nothing happened to the walls. Though all of a sudden, the floor quivered like it was made out of jelly.

Jelly.

I wonder what flavour it was? I fell to my knees and tried to lick the ground, but someone held me back. And I found that hilarious. I giggled as my clothes shrank and acquired a mood of their own, changing colours at whim. My feet grew in size until I was sure the boots were touching the tip of my nose. That set off another bout of laughter.

A small rational part of my mind remained, and tried to tell me I was drugged with space mushrooms or something. The image of a tiny Darren inside my head, attempting to control drugged versions of me, was also comical.

I then became distracted by the Salarians themselves. They were pulling me by the arms down the corridor, towards their shuttle. But I wanted a hug! I put my arms around the nearest one, and he just shook me off, even though I was about half a foot taller than him. So I tried to hug the other one. This elicited a yelp of surprise, and an armoured elbow to my face. I fell to the floor, with undoubtedly a shattered nose, but I couldn't feel anything.

"Don't hurt the target you idiot!"

"He jumped on me sir!"

"He's intoxicated. He's harmless."

I grinned and laid back. Blood gushed out of the wound.

"If the Broker docks my pay because of you, watch what happens."

The one who hit me suddenly looked alarmed, and got a box of medical supplies out.

"Not now! Get in the shuttle! Where did you even train?!" The other screamed.

He was livid. But they managed to shove me through an airlock, leaving me on the floor as they jumped through another door into the cockpit. It looked like the inside of a Kodiak. But then again, I don't know the insides of any other shuttles for comparison.

There was a slight rumble, and I felt the shuttle rise. I was pushed against a wall as it spun around and took off. One Salarian came back and sat down on the bench, the one who had hit me. He took out his kit again, and slathered medi-gel over my face gingerly. His omni-tool lit up with a diagnosis.

"No permanent damage to facial structure. No damage to skull. Good."

He then looked at me, and tilted his head, blinking those huge Salarian eyes. "Why are you so important? You couldn't even fight."

He turned back, and entered the cockpit continuing his assessment of my capture, talking to himself. "Perhaps dignitary of some sort? No, wouldn't be kept in brig. Alliance spy?..."

I sighed, and as the drug slowly exited my system, I was left with a massive downer. The sudden withdrawal was devastating. It all became too much to take in. Tiredness washed over me, and I couldn't even be bothered to sit up. My eyelids felt heavy, too heavy, and I drifted asleep.

~/~

* * *

~/~

I awoke to being thrown against a wall again. The shuttle began rapidly decelerating, and it was no longer the black emptiness of the void I could see through the windows. It was a blue sky. With fluffy white clouds.

We'd entered the atmosphere of a planet and I wasn't even strapped in. Either my captors weren't very good at their job, or they simply didn't give a shit about me. The latter struck me as the most likely conclusion. These guys had boarded a fully equipped Alliance cruiser, somewhere near the central hub of the entire galaxy, and broken someone out from the brig. It dawned on me that the Alliance would not see this as a random act of violence, but as my escape attempt and put me on their wanted list. I was effectively a fugitive. Not a great start to my navy career.

I made my way over to a window and had to press up against the vibrating glass to look down at the land below. It just looked… normal. A bit of ocean over there. A bit of green over here. And a mountain range directly in our path. It looked just like any other planet. Nothing discernible that could point me towards its identification. The shaking panel of glass made my head hurt, and so I had to move away.

The lock on the door to the cockpit was red. I think that meant it was inaccessible. The loading doors to the side were orange, but I didn't have an omni-tool to open them. Even If I did, what was I going to do? Fall to my death? I felt utterly hopeless for the first time in my life. I had nowhere to turn, and no-one to turn to. I sat down on a bench, deflated.

The shuttle finally stopped decelerating and came to halt. It lowered down into a hangar of sorts. I guess we were in an underground base. It was absolutely immense in scale. The view through both port and starboard windows stretched on forever. It was as if they'd carved out an entire mountain.

The cockpit opened and the Salarians came out warily. The one in charge unlocked the side door and walked out. The other hand-cuffed me, before pushing me through the door too.

I was escorted through the base. It wasn't a hangar. It was a shipyard. Hundreds of mechs were working on two giant warships that were at different completion levels. They were of strange design. Nothing I was used to, but strangely familiar. One was almost finished, its hull being painted by mechanical arms from the ceiling, while organics performed the complex jobs of the interior. Just a line of them walking in and out through various access points, carrying precision tools like welders and drills.

_Organics. Hmm._

I don't know why I just referred to _people_ as organics. I'd never done that before.

The other ship was still in the beginning stages. Its metal skeleton frame was the only solid component built so far.

We passed through a security checkpoint, and several minutes later entered an elevator that took us deeper underground. The Salarians were atypically silent throughout the whole journey. I was taken into a large-ish room with many monitors set up around the vicinity of a large desk in the centre. There was a figure working away at a holographic keyboard, armoured boots the only thing visible behind the chair it sat in.

"Leave us."

It was a female voice, and it held enough authority that the Salarians exited quickly. Literally, one of them near enough ran out the room. It raised my mood slightly, but also my curiosity.

_Who is this?_

The chair spun around and I came face to face with my first Asari. She was wearing some sort of black tunic, with what was obviously heavy armour underneath. Her face had white markings. I don't quite remember if they signified something like Turian clan markings, or if it was simply makeup. But they accentuated her graceful features and her azure eyes. Her mere presence was giving me shivers. Not fear. Just… a sensation that this was someone extraordinarily powerful.

She stood up and walked over to me, with an elegance that could have only been developed over centuries of practice. As she came close enough that I could smell her exotic perfume, she reached out with a hand and trailed a finger across the cut on the bridge of my nose. It stung a little but I kept a straight face. I also realised that if I could smell her, she could smell me. I was still in the gym clothes from Brooks' training session. I had been sick that morning too. I felt slightly embarrassed and disgusted about myself, and pulled back from her.

She let her hand fall before clenching a fist and surrounding me in biotic energy. I thought for sure I was about to die for offending her somehow. But the field didn't crush me, or pull my limbs apart, or splatter me against the wall. All it did was tingle.

She released me then looked back into my eyes.

"Who are you?"

It was an unexpected question. Why the hell would someone kidnap me then ask who I was?

"It's a great mystery. One that no-one in this galaxy could possibly solve, except you yourself perhaps" She continued. The Asari turned around and motioned towards the monitors. "Not me, certainly. Though it is my profession."

She turned back to face me once more. "You are real, you are here. Yet you have no past and you have no set future. My natural sense of curiosity is overwhelmed and I must ask again, who are you?"

"Maybe if you could stop talking in riddles." I blurted out.

_I really need to stop talking like that to strangers who could kill me instantly._

She laughed and her eyes lit up.

"Perhaps I should explain my situation. I gather information. I believe information and knowledge hold ultimate power. Past or present, if it had ever existed, one is capable of discovering it. Everything affects the course of the universe. Creation and destruction always leave a trail. A trail one can follow, no matter how small the crumbs are. People need to know certain information, and I do a service to the galaxy by following trails. I wield the power to end a thousand wars, and enough to start more."

She sat back down at her desk, and turned a few monitors on.

"I searched Eden Prime's history for the nature of the recent attack; no doubt someone would eventually come to me for the information. I came across many things. Shipping manifests, transmissions from scientists, reports of Geth activity and even medical records. I now know exactly who attacked, and why. I'm just waiting for the right price for divulgence. However, I picked up something unusual. A by-product of my extensive methods. The computer at The Hargreaves Hospital on that poor colony had filed away an error. A systematic error pertaining to a certain name. A name that had no history, no evidence of ever existing on Eden Prime. But technology is not faultless, I let this occurrence slip. However, the same error was picked up by an Alliance VI a day later, upon the cruiser SSV Cairo. And again the next day by Arcturus Station's own VI, who concluded that it was a fake name, and issued an arrest warrant to a 'Lieutenant Casper'. Also on your record, was an address."

She turned to face me again. Her eyes were alight with excitement. Her whole body language had changed. She must have found extreme pleasure in solving mysteries or something.

"Now this is where it gets interesting. The house at that address did indeed belong to a Mr Adam Hopes. Who had a son called Darren."

_What the fuck? How the hell?!_

"But the problem? It belonged to Mr Hopes in the 21st century. And in precisely the year 2012, his name appears in a local police report that claims his son was missing. That case was never solved."

_That really happened?_

I was in pure shock; every cell of my body had frozen solid.

The elegant, reserved Asari was now almost giddy. But she breathed deeply and regained some composure.

"I am the Shadow Broker. And I ask you again, who are you?"


End file.
